


Camp Half-Blood Blues (Nico/Will)

by OrcusNoir



Series: Orcus Noir's Canon Collection [2]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Campfires, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Connor Stoll is a good boyfriend, Cute Nico, Doctor Will Solace, Domestic Fluff, Established Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Healing, Heartwarming, Hurt Nico di Angelo, Internalized Homophobia, Light Angst, M/M, Malcolm Pace and Connor Stoll are chaotic gays, Minor Original Character(s), Nico di Angelo Needs a Hug, Nico di Angelo and Will Solace are Dorks, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace Fluff, POV Multiple, POV Third Person, Post-Canon, Post-The Tower of Nero (Trials of Apollo), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Hazel Levesque, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, References to Canon, References to Depression, Romance, Southern Will Solace, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Touch-Starved, Will Solace is a Ball of Sunshine, Will Solace is a Dork, Will Solace is a Good Boyfriend
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-17 16:20:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29103192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OrcusNoir/pseuds/OrcusNoir
Summary: Nico and Will's adventures after The Tower of Nero. Lots of healing and fluff, because they deserve it.
Relationships: Malcolm Pace/Connor Stoll, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace
Series: Orcus Noir's Canon Collection [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2151117
Comments: 59
Kudos: 92





	1. The First Time (Nico)

##  **Nico:**

##  **The First Time**

The sun was low. Most of Camp Half-Blood had gone to their respective cabins for the rest of the day and into the night. The only campers still outside in the cool August air were Nico and Will. Sitting in front of the hearth watching the gentle flame, and just talking about whatever came to mind. Nico liked hearing Will ramble on random medical facts and trivia. One, because it could be useful in the future, should he ever get hurt alone, and two, because Will had the most adorable face whenever he was really into a topic. His blue eyes would twinkle in the most beautiful way that always shook Nico to his core. It still felt weird, unnatural, wrong. 

He was raised to hate himself after all. Ever since he laid eyes upon Percy, Nico realized what was going on. He buried it deep, where it was safe. He could feel somewhat...normal. Then he was forced to reveal to the world by Cupid. It tore him open in a way that nothing else did. Yet, if it didn’t happen, Will would’ve never entered Nico’s life.

Will understood why Nico felt uncomfortable still, being gay in the thirties wasn’t...pleasant, and it had a left a huge mark on him. Even still, Will, the ball of sunshine that he was, stuck around. Just being in a generally more accepting time made the whole thing a bit easier. Yet, sometimes, the thoughts came back, and it always hurt.  
  
Will could always pick up on it. So of course he noticed when Nico sunk into his bomber jacket a bit, in a futile attempt to hide himself away. He didn’t want anyone to see him like this. No one could ever see Nico weak, they could use that against him after all.

“Hey Nico.” Will asked softly. “You okay?” Will was in the middle of talking about the human brain. Nico assumed that Will thought Nico got squeamish or something.

“Yeah.” Nico thought about just leaving it at that. But, Mr. D told him to not suppress his emotions. The God told him that doing so would eat at his core being, and Nico didn’t want _that_ to happen. He still enjoyed being alive.

“It’s just…those...thoughts keep coming back. No matter how hard I want to just _let go_ of them. They keep coming back.” Nico shook his head like an Etch-A-Sketch, trying his best to make the bad thoughts just go away.

Will frowned and wrapped his arm around Nico’s shoulders. The sudden touch sent shivers down Nico’s spine, across his entire body even. Touch starved. That was the term that Mr. D used when he described it.

“I’m sorry Nico, I know it’s hard. But, you know I’m always here for you. I’ll stay up all night if I have too.” Will smiled and Nico swore he started to glow just a little bit.  
  
“Do you want to talk about it?” Will asked, pulling Nico closer to him. Nico set his head down on Will’s shoulder, feeling his skin against the soft fabric of Will’s medic hoodie. This felt right. Will didn’t have to do much to make those thoughts disappear, which Nico was more than thankful for. 

“It’s okay, it was the same old stuff. Shit like: this is wrong and disgus-forget it.” Nico was about to go into detail, but held his tongue. “They’re gone for now.”

“I’m not a therapist, but have you told Mr. D about these thoughts?” Will asked. Tightening his grip on Nico’s waist, which just sent another jolt through his body.

Nico nodded, he would never admit it out loud, but he wanted Will to hold him more. It felt...good. Right. His brain did a double take. Mr. D told him to be more open about his emotions, so why was he not telling Will this? Why couldn’t he just do it? What was Will going to do? Run away? Laugh? No. Will Solace, the living ball of sunshine, would call it extremely cute, tease Nico for a second and then go back to holding him.  
Yet his thoughts still ran rampant with the crazy idea that Will was going to hurt him.

“What did he say?” Will’s soothing voice calmed Nico’s mind, setting it right. Will wasn’t going anywhere and he sure wasn’t going to do anything to hurt him. Nico took a deep breath. 

“He told me to be more open with my emotions, which as you can see...is still a bit hard for me.” Nico gulped, awaiting the worst.

“You can always tell me what you’re feeling Nico. He’s right, you do that a lot and it causes a lot of unhealthy side effects. Stuff that isn’t just mental.” Will poked Nico on his forehead playfully.  
  
Nico sighed. See? Nothing to worry about. Why was he always so scared of being open? Another topic to bring up with Mr. D.  
  
“Well...if that’s the case.” With Will’s supportive nature, Nico was able to work up the nerve to tell him. “I-I like being held…” 

Of course he stuttered during it. At least it was better than just randomly saying it in Italian because of stress. At least it wasn’t like the time he forgot the word for something in English and could only say it in Italian. That was embarrassing.

“Nico, that is the cutest thing I’ve heard all day, you’ve come to the right place.” Will kissed the top of Nico’s head, which just made his face beet red.  
  
“You’re seriously adorable, like you have no idea how cute you actually are. One day.” Will teased Nico with another kiss. 

“I love you Nico.” Will said while giving him another squeeze.

_Just say it, you love him. He’s not gonna hurt you. He would never hurt you. It’s okay._ The thought ran through Nico’s mind like a runaway train. Will knew that Nico loved him back, it was obvious. Painfully so. But, just saying those words took more effort then Nico was willing to give out. But, now? He was going to do it, because he loved Will and because Mr. D was right. Suppressing his feelings _was_ unhealthy, and it was already eating away at him.

Nico looked up at Will, his blue eyes glowing from the fire in front of them. They looked beautiful, just like the rest of him. Will was perfect, and Nico wouldn’t change a thing. Even the annoying pop culture references.  
  
_Do it._

“I love you too Will.” With his heart racing, Nico sat up and planted a quick kiss on Will’s lips before sinking back to rest his head on Will’s shoulder. The faint taste of strawberries was now on his lips. 

Will made a noise that could only be described as a squeak before he planted his own kiss back onto Nico’s head.  
  
“I can stay like this forever.” Will said softly. 

Nico could only agree, it was nice. Though he did have one thing to mention.

“You taste like strawberries. Have you been getting into them?” Nico asked with a laugh.  
  
“Uh...maybe?” Will giggled. “I like them okay.”  
  
“Well, I do too. Wanna pick some tomorrow.” Nico suggested, he didn’t exactly like strawberries. But if Will liked them, then so did he.

“Of course. Kayla can handle the Med-Bay for one day.” Will stated.  
  
Nico definitely didn’t pass out on Will’s shoulder shortly after, despite what was told to the Apollo cabin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all better comment. :P


	2. Strawberry Field Peace (Will)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and Nico spend some alone time in the Strawberry Fields before getting invited out to lunch

##  **Will:** **  
****  
****Strawberry Field Peace**

Will would be lying to himself if he didn’t think Nico would come. That wouldn’t be an issue. The son of Hades often didn’t show up most of the time. Will didn’t mind, he knew that it was hard for Nico to do a lot of things, but he would be lying to himself if he didn’t admit to the biggest smile he had when Nico showed up at the Strawberry Fields. Nico was wearing the usual outfit. Black jeans, a World War II bomber jacket with a black t-shirt underneath and his sword at his side. It took some convincing, but Will was able to get Nico to sew on a pride patch on the right arm of the jacket. Will said it was cute, and that he was proud of Nico, whose face was a bright red at the time. It’s something that Will will never forget for the rest of time.   
  
Nico took a spot on the ground next to Will, who was currently picking some of the fresh red fruit and placing them into a wooden basket. Will grabbed one of the berries from the basket and held it out for Nico. He took the berry and inspected it for a second before taking a bite and discarding the strawberry top into the basket.    
  
“How is it?” Will asked with a beaming smile.

“It’s good. Very juicy. Also sweet.” Nico said softly.   
  
“Sounds like you enjoy it then?” Will moved closer to Nico, brushing up against him.

“Yeah. They taste a lot better than some of the other strawberries you get outside of camp.” Nico took another strawberry and ate it.

_ HOLY SHIT! HE’S EATING!  _ Will wanted to jump for joy. Getting Nico to eat  _ anything  _ was a struggle sometimes. But here he was, mindlessly munching on some strawberries like it was nothing. Will’s heart would skip a beat with every bite that Nico made. This was definitely the highlight of his day so far. He hoped that Nico would surprise him again. This was a huge change and Will was all for it. 

Now Will had a new goal with his boyfriend. Get him to eat three full meals a day. The therapy with Mr. D was clearly helping. He wrapped an arm around Nico’s waist, something that Will knew Nico liked and pulled him close. The warmth of the sun surrounded both of them, though Will wondered how Nico could survive in such a coat in this weather. Will would ask sometimes, but Nico would never tell. In fact, Nico wouldn’t even respond sometimes. He would only shrug. Will didn’t mind however, he only cared if Nico was happy. That was the most important thing to Will right now.   


“So, how are ya doing Neeks?” Will asked, planting a quick kiss on Nico’s cheek.

Nico’s face grew red before he responded. “Better than usual. I feel...warm.” Nico said with a slight smile.    
  
“It’s the sun. It feels nice doesn’t it?” Will picked a fresh strawberry and ate it quickly.

Nico let his drop head onto Will’s shoulder. Will slipped his hand into Nico’s shortly after. His fingers were a bit cold, but Will didn’t care. He knew it warmed Nico, and that’s something else he needed.

“Yeah, it’s warm. My cabin gets quite cold sometimes.” Nico admitted, his voice dropping a bit.   


“Anything I can do to help?” Will questioned quickly, he already thought of a few ideas.   
  
“I wish you could stay with me. A few extra blankets would be nice.” Nico grabbed another strawberry and ate it.   
  
“Well that I can do easily” Will said. “My cabin has PLENTY. I’m sure you’ll like them. Very nice and warm.”    
  
“Like you?” Nico’s soft voice warmed Will’s heart. Gods, how could someone so deadly be so adorable?   
  
“Yes, like me.” Will admitted. “I’ll even give you mine, just so you know that I’m there.” He said with a smile while tracing a circle on Nico’s back.

Will could tell that Nico liked the idea based on the small squeak like noise that came from him. Nico seemed really peaceful, nuzzling up against Will’s chest.    
  
_ Yeah, I can understand why Mr. D says he’s touch starved...poor Neeks.  _ Will’s heart broke just a little bit as he wondered how anyone could just ignore Nico. 

“Hey Neeks? Lunch is gonna be called s-” Will started to say but was cut off by the laugh-and voice of Connor Stoll.    
  
The son of Hermes came bursting through the porch door of the Big House. Will could barely see someone else behind him.   
  
“No shit, uh, you guys wanna join Owly and I for lunch? We’re sneaking out.” Connor stated, his blue eyes meeting Will’s for a second before quickly darting over to Nico. 

_ Who the fuck is Owly?  _ Will thought. He thought he saw someone still inside the Big House through the porch window but he couldn’t exactly be sure.

“Owly?” Nico raised an eyebrow. “Only if Will is okay with it.” 

_ Wow, I see how you work.  _ Will turned to face his boyfriend. Sure enough, Nico had a faint sly smile. He didn’t mind sneaking out to spend a day with Nico. At least they were going to New York City, and not some random Cheese Wiz factory in South America.    
  
“Then that’s a yes, only if you have the energy for it.” Will responded, his docterly tone coming out. Which always embarrassed Nico. His face would get a bit red and he would try to hide in his bomber jacket. Yet, Nico loved that voice, and Solace knew he did.

“One thing. Who is  _ “Owly”?  _ I don’t know anyone by that nickname. It sounds like something that Percy would call Annabeth.” Nico asked before getting off the ground.   


“Malcolm. We’re dating.” Connor said bluntly.

_ Since when? And wait? Malcolm’s gay? Huh, also when did Connor come out?  _ Will thought, He wanted to smack himself for not knowing. But, he could always ask when they got together on this obvious double date. Will had his suspicions now that he thought of it more.

Will got up off the ground and slipped his hand back into Nico’s. He felt the slightly cold digits of Nico’s hand wrap tightly around Will’s hand. Will flashed Nico a smile and gave Connor a thumbs up.   
  
“Where are we going?” Will asked. “I don’t want Nico Shadow Traveling there.”   
  
“Just a burger joint down the street. The other way, not to the city. Long drive. Come on!” Connor took off inside the Big House.    
  
Nico shrugged. “Well, this should be fun.”   
  
Will could only agree. “Come on, darlin’, let’s see what the hell Connor has planned.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all better comment. Also check out my other works. Like Legacies of Olympus and Time In New Rome. 
> 
> Or Misfit Chat for memes.


	3. Sneak Thief Justice (Nico)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two couples go on a double date and Connor deals out some much needed justice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had this idea since the Misfit Chat. But I didn't ship Malcolm and Connor back then

##  **Nico:** **  
** **  
** **Sneak Thief Justice**

There were a few things that Nico was expecting to happen. 

One, that they were going to get caught sneaking out, but it turns out that the camp now had two cars. Well, actually, the blue Subaru Impreza WRX they’re using belongs to Cabin Nine. Nyssa had made that point abundantly clear to Malcolm beforehand that if anything happened to the car his head would meet Cassidy’s mace, but trusted him enough to drive it-for some reason.

Two, that they would get caught by monsters on the way there. Nope. Not a single blip on the hour drive down the road. Nico watched from the back seat as the trees flew by. He tuned out Malcolm explaining the history of the car to Will, who was intently listening for some reason that Nico couldn’t understand, but Will seemed happy and that was the important bit. Nico noticed that the trees turned into average sized homes with attached garages. He never understood why houses were built like this, and today was not the day learning about such a topic, even if Malcolm would be more than willing to teach Nico about it for hours on end.

Three, that the restaurant they were going to was some run down establishment with food of questionable quality. Turns out the place that Malcolm pulled into was a fifties style burger joint, complete with the jazz music as the four of them walked inside. Will leaned into Nico’s side.   
  
“This place is so cute. What do you think?” He asked with a whisper.

Nico shrugged, the place was oddly nostalgic, even if he wasn’t around for the fifties. The jazz music did bring him back to that time, though the feeling wasn’t bad this time. It was this warm, fuzzy feeling that was welcome instead of unwanted. The group took a seat at a red color booth and started to browse the menu, which had black and white checkerboard borders on each side.   
  
It was a bit hard for Nico to read, given his dyslexia, but he was able to make out something that didn’t seem too heavy. But, Will insisted that Nico get a cheeseburger and not just a plate of fries. Nico caved in upon seeing Will’s smile. He could always just take it home if he couldn’t finish it. Though he did find it odd that all four of them ordered basically the same thing. Bacon cheeseburger with fries and a Coke, although Malcolm had his with blue cheese for some reason.

“So.” Connor piped up after handing the waitress their menus. “What’s been happening with you two?” He tossed Nico a straw for his soda.

“Nothing much.” Will spoke, wrapping his arm around Nico’s waist. Much like before, the slightest of touch sent shivers down Nico’s spine. Gods, Mr. D was so right. He WAS touch starved. He hated admitting it, but it was the truth. At least Will was into giving him hugs. Nico used to protest it, but he always secretly liked it. Now, he’s more used to just admitting it.   
  
“I feel that. Connor and I snuck out yesterday to get one of my siblings an owl plush. It was really nice.” Malcolm laughed, he gave Connor a quick peck on the cheek. Seeing such a display of affection out in public kinda shocked Nico. Throughout his life, he’d only ever seen straight couples do that. But here he was, watching Malcolm and Connor, who Nico had to admit are cute together, doing it out in public with no fear. No worry about what others might think. Besides, why should he care about what they think?

“That sounds super cute.” Will smiled, he took a big sip from his Coke without mentioning something about its negative health benefits. Which was a shock to Nico.  
  
“It’s the best we can do for the kid ya know.” Connor laughed as their food was placed on the red table. Nico was surprised by how big the cheeseburger actually was, but he was a bit hungry. While Malcolm, Connor and Will talked about camp drama-Nico picked up the juicy burger and took a bite. The burger was really good, more so than what he was expecting to begin with. Nico could feel Will’s eyes watching him, he could only imagine what Dr. Sunshine was thinking. Probably a bunch of things about how proud he was of Nico. While it annoyed him a bit, he did take Will’s advice to heart. It was just hard at times. 

“Well, guess you were hungry.” Malcolm said while stuffing a fry in his mouth.

“Well, it’s a good burger.” Nico softly laughed just noticing that he ate the entire thing.

“Told ya, this place is great.” Connor said, glancing up towards the T.V that was hanging on the wall to their right. Nico looked as well. It was just playing a boring news clip as usual. Well, boring that is until a breaking news report graphic covered the screen of the aging CRT.  
  
The four of them all turned to watch the news broadcast as one of the waiters turned the T.V’s volume up after saying something along the lines of: “this is some crazy shit.” to another patron. 

A female reporter in a blue dress stood in the middle of an intersection, a crashed police cruiser could be spotted in the background by a light pole. Nico raised an eyebrow, this definitely was the work of some demigods.  
  
The reporter described how a red sports car evaded Boston police and led them on a twenty minute long chase on the freeway near the city, which somehow caused three police cruisers to crash. The car wasn’t found and the driver is at large with no description.

“Dude, that sounds like fun.” Connor noted, pointing his fry at the T.V. “Whatcha say Owly? Wanna cause some trouble?”  
  
“Not in Cassidy’s car. Maybe later.” Malcolm laughed. “She would kill us both for that.”

“I wouldn’t help with your medical care.” Will crossed his arms. “I’m sure the others in my cabin will be more than glad to help.”  
  
Nico just watched with a smile. He couldn’t get over just how cute Will was, so Nico did the first thing that came to his mind. Just a quick kiss on the cheek. Will’s face turned a slight shade of red. Malcolm chuckled at Will’s red face and Connor then pecked Malcolm on his cheek causing the same reaction.

Unfortunately, that created issues. One of the patrons behind them noticed and made some off-kilter remarks that sounded like it came right from the 1940s. The light and cheerful mood was gone and Nico found himself in that dark place again. With a sigh, Nico sunk his head into his arms. Just wanting the bad thoughts to go away. Will placed his arm around Nico’s waist, which did help.  
  
“What a dick.” Connor’s voice penetrated Nico’s ears. He peeked up to see Connor sliding out of the booth and approaching the table behind them before sitting back down. He had a black rectangle in his hands.   
  
“Would be a shame…” Connor muttered, idly tapping at the object. Nico picked his head up upon realizing what Connor just did. The bad thoughts went away as quickly as they came.   
  
“Connor Stoll…” Malcolm sighed. “That-”   
  
“Yes I did, and he deserves it. Just sent a mass text to this guy’s contacts about what he said. Fucker. Be right back.” Connor got back up and placed the phone and the table where the antagonistic man sat without him even noticing.   
  
“Good job, honestly. He did deserve it.” Will scolded, he turned to face Nico, his face sullen. “You doing okay Neeks?” Will asked softly, his blue eyes stared into Nico’s soul almost. Concern was drawn all over his expression.   
  
“Yeah, a lot better after seeing that. Let’s get out of here.” Nico smiled, snaking his hand into Will’s. Seeing assholes like that guy getting what they deserve put a smile to his face. It definitely uplifted his spirits. Nico decided on something right then and there. He wasn’t going to let random morons dictate how he feels about being who he is. Besides, what could a puny mortal do to the son of Hades?   
  
“Alright then.” Malcolm got up from the booth after Connor. “I’ll pay, meet you guys outside.”   
  
The three of them stood by the blue Impreza waiting for Malcolm. Connor was laughing the entire time. 

“Can’t wait to see the look on his face, huh Owly.” He said to Malcolm as he unlocked the car. 

“Why don’t we talk about our shenanigans in the car, Sneak Thief.” Malcolm responded with a laugh.  
  
Malcolm didn’t waste time getting back on the road. This time Nico wasn’t staring out the window tuning them out. The two couples laughed and joked during the trip back to Camp-Half Blood, in which the lovable Will Solace had his head resting on Nico's shoulder the entire time. Nico just wished there was more room so Will could just pass out on him. Those were nice days. Where everything was quiet and still expect for their breathing. Where the only source of warmth was each other because the air was a bit cold but not too cold. He loved those moments, much like this one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who caused a car Chase in Boston?
> 
> Weird.
> 
> Anyways, y'all should comment


	4. Sleep Is More Important (Will)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will helps Nico put some pieces of his past together, and comforts him because it starts to hurt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EXPANDING ON THE LORE? Yes, yes I am. I've always wondered about the Demigods from the past, so here's one.

##  **Will:** **  
** **  
Sleep Is More Important**

Normally, Will didn’t sleep with Nico in his cabin, normally that is. But today was something special. After the double date with Connor and Malcolm (who Will was still trying to figure out when they got together), Nico went and “borrowed” Chiron’s log of all Half-Bloods who lived at camp or who were active (read: alive) during the 1940s-50s. So Will decided that it would be best to help Nico with his current obsession. Figuring out who the mysterious man was from his dreams. Will was able to get some information out of Nico, apparently this person was there in D.C before Nico and his sister were sent to the Lotus Hotel and Casino. 

So there they were, sitting at a dark oak table in Cabin 13 with hundreds of papers sprawled before them. Both of them in their pajamas and half asleep.

Nico slid a document over to Will, this one was about the son of Zeus who was around during the time, a man by the name of _Zachary Klein_ .   
  
“Close, he’s connected to the guy, but not him. UGH.” Nico buried his head in his hands, his black hair flopping about. “I’m so tired…” He muttered softly, but loud enough that Will was barely able to make out what he said.   
  
“Then go to bed Neeks, it’s okay. You don’t have to stay up. The papers won’t go anywhere.” Will said, making his way over to his boyfriend. “I can assure that. Staying up this late isn’t healthy darlin’.” His southern accent slipped for just a second. It wasn’t something that Will was trying to mask, it just came out at odd times. Mostly around Nico.

“But I need to know, I _keep_ seeing him every time I sleep. Brown hair, a young face, obnoxious British accent, long coat, gloved left hand, former soldier. It won’t go away.” Nico sighed. He tossed the paper he was looking at into the pile that was forming in the center of the table. Nico went to grab another one but Will grabbed his arm.

“You need sleep, please. It’s almost 10 P.M. You need it more than you think. Sleep is healthy and good. Okay? I know how much you like to sleep.” Will softly teased as Nico stuck his tongue out at him.

“Ugh fine, five more minutes okay?” Nico asked, grabbing another document. Will nodded in agreement and went back to look. He knew that five minutes would turn into twenty, and then Nico would slowly start to pass out in his chair and then he would have to drag the sleeping son of Hades into his bunk and then SOMEHOW sneak back into Cabin Seven, well not like any of Will’s siblings would _care._   
  
So Will sat back down with a smile, plan forming in his head as he reached for another document. This one didn’t provide much help either, son of Hermes in New Hampshire of all places. The next one was about a Scottish demigod, nope not it.   
  
None of the papers Will grabbed were it, though he did find the paper of _Bea Wise_ , which he thought was kinda ironic after hearing about Apollo’s _“Intro to Camp Half-Blood”_ movie. But, it was of no use. Another waste of Nico’s precious five minutes, which had already passed. Will grabbed another one. This one had promise, despite the folder being rather thin.   
  
British? Check. Brown hair? Check. Youthful face? Well, Will did think the picture of the Half-Blood was cute, so check. Gloved left hand? Check. Will keep reading on. His name was _Albert Chambers,_ former member of the RAF and fought in World War II. So the soldier bit checked out as well. This was it. Will handed the document to Nico. “Got him. Read it out.”   
  
“No way, oh Gods, you can’t be serious…” Nico read over the document a few times in silence. “It’s him...But, it said he died in 1984? Huh.” He shook his head and focused on the picture of the Half-Blood again. “No, that doesn’t make sense.” 

“What’s wrong Nico?” Will asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
“He’s not dead. I can tell, I can **_feel_ ** it. But this paper said he’s dead. Albert Chambers isn’t dead.” Nico sighed. Will noticed that when Nico said the man’s name the room got oddly quiet. It was a name that hadn’t been uttered in some time. “No summoning him for questions. Now I gotta track him down.” 

“Wait, you can detect people if they’re dead from pictures alone?” Will asked, a bit amazed at his boyfriend’s powers.  
  
“Yeah, it gets a bit awkward looking at old photographs. But where could he _be?_ Does he even know who I am? Did...did he know my mom?” Nico’s voice went shallow. He muttered something in Italian and wiped his eyes.   
  
Will got up and went over to Nico. “Are you okay?” He asked. “I understand if you want to be alone.” 

“Stay, Gods, please stay.” Nico muttered, falling into Will’s arms. Will had to awkwardly catch him. _Gods,_ He thought, _why is Nico always so cold?_ “Wanna get to bed?” Will asked.

“Yes please…” Nico sleepily stated.

Will helped Nico into the coffin-shaped bunk, he draped the black blanket over him and was about to go into another one but was interrupted by Nico.   
  
“Don’t go.” Nico softly muttered, his voice weak with sleep.

“I was just looking for a pla-” Will stopped himself and got into the bunk with Nico. “I got you.” Nico moved himself on top of Will, resting his head on Will’s chest. 

“Warm sunshine doctor.” Nico closed his eyes. “Thanks...I hope we don’t get yelled at.”

“We won’t.” Will confidently, yet softly, stated. “No one cares in the Apollo cabin, that’s just facts. If the Athena cabin doesn’t snitch on Malcolm sneaking out with Connor, then why would my cabin do it?”  
  
“How. How do you know those two sneak out?” Nico asked, which was an odd question, considering that the four of them _literally_ snuck out of the camp earlier in the day.

“Did you forget the entire day Neeks?” Will cooed, giving his boyfriend a kiss on his forehead, ignoring the loose strands of raven hair that got caught on his lips.

“Oh fuck, you’re right. Gods, I’m tired.” Nico yawned. “How do you think they get away with it?” He asked. “I wanna do more...gay things. Fuck those dicks. Connor was right, the hell can they do to me?”  
  
“Exactly Nico, they can’t do anything to you.” Another kiss. “Now get some sleep.” Will whispered. He grabbed the black blanket and draped it over both of them. “Goodnight Nico. Love you.” Will wrapped his arms around Nico’s waist.

“Love you too.” Nico sleepy muttered before falling asleep. Will was fast asleep shortly after, hearing Nico’s soft breathing was oddly soothing to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all should comment :P


	5. Dreams Of (Supposedly) Dead Men (Nico)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico has a dream about the man he's looking for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of lore stuff, but nothing that we know of in canon soooo...
> 
> It's a bit bloody, but nothing that that wouldn't be in canon.

##  **Nico:** **  
** **  
** **Dreams Of (Supposedly) Dead Men**

Dreams for Nico were always weird. Even weirder as he was a Half-Blood.

But this wasn’t what he was expecting. Placed in the middle of a train station, surrounded by grey tile and walls. Nico remembered when he used to be obsessed with trains. Those days feel so long gone now. Hoards of people dressed in various suits passed him by, not paying a single thought to the out of place Nico. There was soft jazz music playing from some overheard speaker, and the entire place had the faint smell of old cigarettes. The music seemed oddly familiar, in fact, everything seemed familiar.

Nico started to explore his current environment, doing his best not to bump into anyone, he still found it odd that no one cared. He eventually spotted a tall dark haired man with pale skin wearing a long equally black coat who seemed to be quickly advancing to one of the many benches. Nico heard an announcement blare out, something about a train leaving in fifteen minutes.  
  
The dark haired man stopped in front of one of the benches and raised his hand. Suddenly hoards of people started to leave the station, their conversations continuing without notice. A form of Mist Manipulation, Nico quickly realized. The dark haired man muttered something, he placed his hands on one of the now empty benches and stared off at the train tracks, almost like the darkness of the tunnel was inviting. Nico got a good look at his face. The man was older, mid thirties at best, brown eyes with dark circles under them, various scars on his thin cheeks, and a light stubble. The man looked a lot like a vampire just without the distorted cheek bones. 

“Where could they be?” The man asked no one in particular. “Where did HE PUT THEM?!” He shouted, which caused Nico to jump a bit. Luckily, as it was clearly evident by this point, no one noticed his existence.  
  
“Yes, yes, where could they be.” A posh voice called out from behind. Both Nico and the dark haired man turned to face the direction of the voice. From the distance Nico could make out the owner of the posh voice easily.  
  
A white man of average build sporting a greyish-olive trench coat that had a weird glimmer of Celestial bronze, with a grey suit on underneath. Shaggy brown hair, with sharp blue eyes, his face was young. His left hand sported a black leather glove. The hair stood on Nico’s back, his breathing sharpened, finally staring at the man from his dreams. Albert Chambers, son of Hephaestus, in the flesh. Well, in the dream that is.

“Of course you’re here. What the fuck do you want Chambers?” The dark haired man spoke again with malice tainting his voice

“Rude to speak to a fellow demigod like that innit?” Albert threw his hands up and let them fall to his side.

“Come on Mercer, I thought we were friends.” Albert walked closer, the Celestial bronze glimmer becoming faint, the source was a pin on the right side of the coat. It was positioned weirdly, most of it was against Albert’s suit and not his coat. The more Nico looked at it, the more he doubted the fact that it was a pin at all.  
  
“Friends? We fought in the war, that doesn’t make us friends. Not when you disrespect everything about how we fight, how we train, how we learn, how we-” Mercer started to go on an angry rant before Albert cut him off.  
  
“Oh shut it, between you and the twins, I don’t know what’s worse. Your ramblings on tradition or their obsession with unity.” Albert chuckled to himself. “Maybe it’s both. After all these years, none of you call me. Why?”

Nico raised an eyebrow. The twins? He never heard of any super important Half-Bloods who happened to be twins, so this was something else that needed to be looked into.

“It’s you, Albert. Now tell me. Where are _they?_ ” Mercer spoke again, with extra emphasis on “they”.

“You’re about ten years too late. Your father knew.” Albert replied, his voice almost heavy with guilt.  
  
_Your father knew? Ten years late?_ Nico’s mind tried its best to put some of the pieces together.

“The prophecy. Their existence puts us in danger!” Mercer shouted, he tossed his black coat off, which revealed a black suit underneath. 

_Wait, prophecy? That means...they’re talking about Bianca and I. Oh no._ Nico’s stomach turned over a few times. Why didn’t his father tell him about Mercer? What Albert said next just made it worse.  
  
“Fratricide? Really? As if killing Nico and Bianca would solve anything. I can tell you that, where they are now, nothing can happen. You don’t need to find them.” Albert stated coldy. He started to inspect his gloved hand for some reason.  
  
Hearing his sister’s name next to his own made Nico’s eyes water. It felt like so long ago that he heard the news of her death.

“You have no idea what you’re talking about.” Mercer snapped his fingers, a dark cloud formed around his right hand which eventually took the form of a sword. A Stygian Iron sword, one that looked nearly identical to Nico’s. He was pretty sure that it's the _same_ one.

Mercer raised the wicked blade up towards Albert’s face, slowly inching his way towards the Brit. But, Albert didn’t budge, he just stood his ground.

“Mercer Mercer Mercer, for a fellow member of the Twelve you seem to be doing a great job of fulfilling that _other_ prophecy.” Albert laughed to himself. “And really? Umbra? Your dark blade? How many enchantments have you made that poor sap put on that thing?”

_The Twelve? Who are they? Like the Seven for World War Two or something?_ Nico sighed, yet _another_ thing he had to research.

“Next word from your mouth that isn’t the location of them, this “dark blade” is going to meet your fucking neck. ANSWER ME!” Mercer screamed, the surrounding area getting really cold, almost freezing, for a second.

“Alright fine.” Albert threw his hands up, but let them fall again. “Lotus Hotel and Casino. Las Vegas. Nevada. Good luck.”

Just hearing that name again brought back some rather unpleasant memories, but Nico ignored them.

“See how hard that was?. Now I hate to do this, actually I don’t, but I can’t leave a rat alive.” Mercer swung the Stygian iron sword at Albert, but instead of hitting him. Albert literally _caught_ the blade with his gloved hand with the screeching sound of metal scrapping metal filling the empty subway station.

“Did you forget something? I mean come on Mercer...tisk tisk.” With incredible speed, Albert grabbed the Celestial bronze object on his coat while pulling Mercer towards him by his sword. At the same time a Celestial bronze sword appeared in Albert’s right hand, forcing its way into Mercer’s stomach. Mercer’s sword, that Albert had called _Umbra,_ fell to the ground with a clang.  
  
“You…” Mercer dropped to the floor with a thud when Albert pulled the blade from his gut. Nico moved back a bit as a pool of blood started to form underneath his fallen brother. “How did you...get...that? Ana...” Mercer spoke weakly as Albert inspected the now bloodied sword. A sword that looked _awfully_ familiar. A leaf like blade, simple design. No, it couldn’t be, but it was.  
  
“Oh this old girl? She was a comb. Now she’s a capped fountain pen. Rather interesting.” Albert laughed to himself as Mercer laid before him. Dead.

A _comb._ The fact that Albert had Percy’s sword was confusing to Nico. His main question being how he got it. Though his questions had to wait as a voice screamed out Mercer’s name.  
  
Another Half-Blood came from further in the station. This one dressed rather casually by 1940s standards. He charged Albert and knocked him to the ground, causing Riptide to clatter to the tile ground, Nico had to step away to avoid it hitting him. 

The Half-Blood raised his sword at the fallen Brit, ready to strike, but Riptide...for whatever reason started to float and was driven into the back of the attacking demigod. He screamed out in agony before dropping to the ground. Albert jumped to his feet, eyes alert for any other threats. Nico followed where he was looking. By the train tracks stood another Half-Blood, this one wearing a full suit of Celestial bronze armor stylized to look like the armor worn by a Spartan.

“JOHN! FUCK YOU CHAMBERS!” The Half-Blood screamed out for his fallen comrade and raised a spear.  
  
Albert held out his gloved hand, though the glove was falling apart. Bits of Celestial bronze shone through the massive tear in the palm. The backplate of the Half-Blood’s armor started to be pulled away from him, the straps connecting both plates kept the chestplate attached to him, halting his movement. He started to be dragged towards the tracks before he spoke again.  
  
“Albert, please don’t. Gods, Albert, for fuck’s sake!” The demigod started to beg before attempting to undo the straps on his armor. Nico could hear a train approaching, probably the same one from the announcement a while back.  
  
“Sorry you fucking wanker. We don’t try to kill children!” Albert announced, flicking his wrist and sending the armored Half-Blood directly into the front of the train which passed by the station at incredible speeds. Albert went over to Riptide and pulled it out of the second Half-Blood’s back. He produced a handkerchief and cleaned the blade before capping it, and clipping it back onto the inside of his coat. 

“From Twelve, down to Nine.” Albert said to himself, inspecting his metal hand after removing the glove. There was a deep gash on the palm. Nico could see that his wrist was also Celestial bronze, leading him to assume the entire arm was metal. Albert went over to Mercer’s body and grabbed Umbra. He started to toss it in his hand while humming the song being played from the radio overhead.

“They have things like the atom bomb, so I think I stay where I am. Civilization. I’ll stay right here.” Albert mused to himself, before quickly leaving the station as mortals started to fill it up again.  
  
The dream ended as Nico heard a mortal scream out in terror as she spotted the two bloodied bodies on the floor. Nico gasped in his bed, his head still on Will’s chest. He groggily looked up at the son of Apollo.  
  
Will was awake and fiddling with his fingers. “Hey sleepy head!” Will excitedly said. “How did you sleep?” He asked, raking his fingers through Nico’s hair. The sensation was more than welcome after experiencing that dream.  
  
“I had a dream about Albert.” Nico softly said, still not fully awake unlike his boyfriend. Even though his dream was certainly weird and unsettling, Nico didn’t feel exhausted as he normally would.  
  
“Oh, are you okay?” Will asked, concerned, but Nico brushed him off. Right now, all he wanted was for this moment to never end. Will’s warmth kept any bad thoughts away, though he did have the song from the radio stuck in his head. Even though Nico didn’t know the name or the lyrics outside of what Albert sang to himself 

“I’m okay, I’ll tell you about it. Under one condition. I stay right here.” Nico smiled, which he was doing more with Will around than normal. He was the best boyfriend to ever exist.  
  
“Alright Nico. Tell me what happened.” Will grabbed Nico’s hands as he began to retell his dream from the beginning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all should comment.
> 
> Also props to Zyrocs for piecing together the breadcrumbs as to who Albert was. 
> 
> Radio song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zndUfV1i1Co


End file.
